Admiral flags higher first-half profit, Dechra trading ends year strong

London open

The FTSE 100 is expected to open 10 points lower on Monday, having closed up 1.3% at 7,121.88 on Friday.

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Insurance company Admiral said it expected a higher-than-expected first-half profit due to an “unusually positive” development in the cost of UK motor injury claims. The firm on Monday guided for pre-tax profit of £450m - £500m and a dividend of 110 – 125p a share. “The stronger result is due to unusually positive development in the cost of UK motor bodily injury claims from a number of prior underwriting years which has led to higher reserve releases and profit commission revenue,” Admiral said in a statement.

Dechra Pharmaceuticals reported a 21% improvement in group revenue at constant exchange rates for its financial year on Monday, or 18% at actual exchange rates. The FTSE 250 company said the stronger-than-expected trading it reported in early June continued for the rest of the period, as expected. It said it delivered “excellent” year-on-year organic revenue growth for the 12 months ended 30 June, supplemented by the product acquisitions of ‘Osurnia’ and ‘Mirataz’, both of which delivered good incremental growth.

Newspaper round-up

UK business confidence has jumped as firms anticipate the lifting of lockdown restrictions later this month, despite concerns over the rise in Covid-19 infections. A survey by accountancy and business advisory firm BDO found that firms were their most optimistic since 2005 in June. Manufacturing optimism rose sharply, due to improved global economic outlook driven by the Covid-19 vaccine rollout this year. - Guardian

The overwhelming majority of British workers would not want to see the introduction of a four-day working week if it meant taking a cut to their pay. Eight out of 10 British employees would not favour accepting a reduction in working hours if it resulted in lower wages, according to research by cross-party thinktank, the Social Market Foundation (SMF), with only one in 10 employees willing to work less and earn less. - Guardian

Ministers have launched secret talks on a short-term visa scheme for foreign lorry drivers as they race to prevent a shortage of staff from overwhelming the haulage industry. Officials at the Department for Transport (DfT) are consulting industry chiefs on how to tackle the crisis, with an estimated shortfall of 100,000 truckers delaying deliveries of everything from clothing to food and fuelling a rise in prices. - Telegraph

House sales have collapsed by more than half this month after Rishi Sunak reined in a stamp duty holiday which was helping to fuel the red-hot property market, estate agent Knight Frank has said. The number of property exchanges in the first week of July was 60pc below the five-year average for this time of year, it said, after buyers scrambled to complete deals before the end of June. - Telegraph

Businesses are gearing up for a boom in hiring and investment as economic activity returns to normal, reports say. While companies spent much of last year cutting costs, they are now taking advantage of record low interest rates and tax incentives to unleash investment to help meet rising demand. Hiring and investment will hit their highest level in almost seven years over the coming months, according to a report by Deloitte. At the same time, expansion through acquisition has become a higher priority than at any time in the past 11 years. - The Times

US close

Stocks on Wall Street closed on a positive note on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.3% at 34,870.16.

The S&P 500 added 1.13% to 4,369.55, and the Nasdaq Composite was ahead 0.98% at 14,701.92.